Barca show increasing interest in Gremio’s Arthur

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Bengaluru, November 28: Spanish giants Barcelona have stepped up their interest in Gremio central midfielder Arthur as per reports from Goal.com.

Robert Fernandez, Barcelona's technical director, watched the 21-year-old during their 1-0 victory over Lanus in the first leg of the Copa Libertadores final last week and he is clearly impressed by what he saw and is now looking to take a deeper look at the player.

Arthur was recently called up for the national squad and has been watched by Barcelona since the beginning of the European season.

However, he recently renewed his contract in Brazil and is committed to Gremio until 2021, with a mammoth release cause of around €50 million.

Though, it is believed that a bid worth around €15-20m would be enough to prise the midfielder away from the Brazilian club.

Barcelona are not the only European club in his pursuit. But it is a well known fact that the Catalan giants are usually the first-choice of most South Americans.

Arthur has been an integral part of Gremio's challenge both at home and abroad this season, having played 38 matches for them this term, scoring one goal and providing one further assist.

The 21-year-old is predominantly a defensive midfielder with an excellent range of passing and Barcelona view him as a long-term replacement of Sergio Busquets who has been the base of the Barcelona midfield trio for more than a decade now.

Chelsea and Manchester United are also interested in the Brazil international and they are also likely to make their moves in January for the youngster who has what it takes to become a world-class midfielder.

Barcelona are also said to be monitoring the progress of Yerry Mina, the highly-rated Palmeiras defender, and he could be another winter target for the Catalan side as they look to bolster their squad.